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Penney to reintroduce targeted discounts: reports

J.C. Penney Co Inc will begin offering targeted discounts at certain times throughout the year, a change of course for the struggling U.S. retailer that had stopped offering such discounts, according to media reports.

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The reintroduction of targeted discounts is aimed at luring shoppers who were turned off when the discounts disappeared last year, chief executive Ron Johnson told The Associated Press. (http://link.reuters.com/cev55t)

The department store chain also plans to add price tags or signs for more than half of its merchandise to show customers how much they're saving by shopping at the chain, according to the AP report.

"Our sales have gone backward a little more than we expected, but that doesn't change the vision or the strategy. We made changes and we learned an incredible amount. That is what's informing our tactics as we go forward." Johnson was quoted as saying.

Penney has been revamping stores, merchandise and strategy under Johnson, who previously ran the retail division at Apple Inc .

"We will have a targeted sale in a certain category, when it means the most to our customer," spokeswoman Kristin Hays told the Wall Street Journal in an email.